Children's home run by Acheron Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 1 Registered provider: Acheron Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. The home provides care for up to three children who have experienced social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered since September 2021 and holds the relevant qualification.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 24 January 2023

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/01/2023 Full Good 16/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. Since the last inspection, two children have moved into the home and one child has moved on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a home that is well maintained and homely. There is plenty of communal and outdoor space in the home for children to spend their time. The home is welcoming, with photos of the children displayed throughout. This provides children with a sense of belonging and makes it feel like their home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are registered with local health services and access these when needed. Staff support and encourage the children to lead healthy lifestyles. The manager and staff receive clinical support and guidance. Staff are now developing therapeutic skills that enhance interactions between them and the children. For example, inspectors saw a range of key-work sessions being recorded with the children that demonstrated the therapeutic approach taken to support them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities in and out of the home. These include spending time with friends, caring for their pets and going to the gym. The children in the home also spend time together and get on well. They go on regular bowling trips and are looking forward to a planned holiday together in Wales. As a result, children are having experiences they have not had before and are developing strong relationships with each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff regularly consult with children about the care they receive and seek their involvement so they can have their say on matters in the home. The manager feeds back to the children following any requests they make. Children have trusting relationships with the manager and staff because they feel valued, and their views are listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers promote education. One child has recently taken their GCSE examinations and has a place at college to further their education. The manager and staff are ambitious for each of the children's futures and put plans in place to help them achieve their goals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child had an internal move to another home in the organisation. This has meant that they are still supported by staff that they know and had a well-planned transition. The manager is collating the child’s pictures into a memory book, at the time of inspection this had not been given to the child.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children are safe. Staff understand the risks for children. For example, when a child was out locally, staff noticed a car following the child. Staff provided these details to Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 4 the police and helped the child to return home safely. Staff understood the vulnerability of the child and were aware that they were at risk of exploitation. As a result, they were able to prevent any harm and shared their observations and details of the potential perpetrator with the police.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

When children are not where they are expected to be, staff follow the plans that are in place and respond well. They search for children and work with external services to locate them promptly.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff support children to help them understand and identify their emotions and develop strategies to help them when they feel upset. There have been incidents for one child of self-injurious behaviour. When incidents of self-harm occur, staff use their knowledge of the child to talk to them, provide reassurance and follow the plans in place to support them. On occasion, staff have been able to prevent incidents of self-harm from happening due to their ability to de-escalate and intervene when they have been told of a child’s intention to harm themselves.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

On two occasions a child was administered the wrong dose of medication. Following the first occasion the manager did implement measures for safer administration but this did not prevent a second incident occurring. Advice was sought from a medical adviser on both occasions and no harm was caused to the child. The local authority social worker was also informed and the threshold was not met for child protection procedures to be instigated. Ofsted were not notified of these incidents as this was not felt to be a serious incident by the manager, due to being advised by a health professional that the increased dosage did not impact on the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by an experienced manager. They are child-focused and understand the needs of the children. The manager is a strong advocate for children. For example, they advocated for a child to change the day they engage in therapeutic work due to the impact the recovery of this work has been having on their leisure activities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The responsible individual and manager have a good understanding of the operation of the home. The manager is aware of the home’s strengths and areas of development. There has been a restructure of the leadership team and new senior positions have been recruited to, strengthening the management of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Social workers speak highly of the home and have told inspectors that communication between themselves and the manager is good. One professional noted that the staff ‘go above and beyond’ to support a child. Two social workers described working closely with the manager to support the children in areas where they are currently experiencing difficulties.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have access to a range of online and face-to-face training. Overall, staff who spoke to inspectors are positive about their work and say that the manager provides good support. Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 5 The manager monitors children’s progress and quality of care at the home on an ongoing basis. There are plans in place to develop this further to highlight more subtle progression. As a result, children’s progress is understood.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The children’s guide has not been kept up to date. The manager has not ensured that the name and address of the children’s commissioner are added to the guide as required. Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that when administering medication, the correct dosage is given. 5 October 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s guide is kept up to date and that the children’s commissioner contact details are added to the guide. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.22)  The registered person should ensure that they keep and encourage children to keep appropriate memorabilia of the time spent living at the home . (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.14)  The registered person should review the threshold of what they consider to be a serious incident. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.12)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Acheron Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 117 Draycott Old Road, Forsbrook, Stoke-on-Trent ST11 9AL

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Inspectors

Jade Bradburn, Social Care Inspector Michelle Spruce, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 8 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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